When Gerold Fenchel went to check the creek by his house near Bridge Lake to find out what the ravens and eagles were fighting over, he was surprised to find a leftover fish head.
He was left puzzled, wondering what had left it there.
The next day he got his answer.
His dog, Boomer, zipped “like an arrow” off the porch and towards what Fenchel immediately determined was a grizzly bear.
“This guy was actually standing and Boomer looked at him and Boomer was barking.”
Fenchel says he grabbed a broom and ran out of the house to help his dog, who despite Fenchel’s calls, wouldn’t stand down to the bear, eventually chasing it away from the house.
That was the first of three encounters Fenchel would have with the bear, whom he and his wife have christened “Gordi.”
Once, Gordi broke into a pen Fenchel keeps rabbits in, “accidentally” stepping on one of the animals and killing it, but not actually eating the creature according to Fenchel.
Another morning, Fenchel woke up to Boomer’s barking, bringing a bear banger that he had bought outside with him. When he heard a noise near the creek he fired the banger in that direction, and soon after, saw the bear running up the hill.
Fenchel called the local conservation officer who brought out a live trap for the creature.
According to Colin Kravontka, 100 Mile House conservation officer, the bear was likely wandering up and down the creek catching fish that were spawning.
While the trap didn’t catch the bear, Fenchel says they haven’t seen it in about a week, either in person or on the trail cameras they set up in the area. He emphasizes that the bear did not attack anyone and that he especially didn’t want to see the animal killed.
Kravontka says that it’s important to keep your house free from attractants to stop them from becoming pests, especially if you are living in rural areas.
He says to keep garbage and pet food inside, don’t leave bird feeders outside, protect smaller animals in secure, enclosed areas and ensure your fencing is solid or electric if possible.
“People just have to be aware that this time of year they are out and they are feeding and they are hungry,” he says.
He does encourage those people having issues with wildlife to call the RAPP (Report All Poachers and Polluters) line for a conservation officer at 1-877-952-7277.
For the most part, however, like Gordi, as long as they are eating from their natural food sources, bears will wander on their own.
“If you have no attractants they should move on,” he says.
While Fenchel is no longer worried about the bear in his yard, he says his biggest lesson has been to trust his dog.
“I’m really looking at my dog. If he is relaxed in the grass in front of my house, there is no danger at all.”
Otherwise, he says, “That was an experience.”